Urology consultants versus large language models : potentials and hazards for medical advice in urology

Background Current interest surrounding large language models (LLMs) will lead to an increase in their use for medical advice. Although LLMs offer huge potential, they also pose potential misinformation hazards. Objective This study evaluates three LLMs answering urology-themed clinical case-based questions by comparing the quality of answers to those provided by urology consultants. Methods Forty-five case-based questions were answered by consultants and LLMs (ChatGPT 3.5, ChatGPT 4, Bard). Answers were blindly rated using a six-step Likert scale by four consultants in the categories: ‘medical adequacy’, ‘conciseness’, ‘coherence’ and ‘comprehensibility’. Possible misinformation hazards were identified; a modified Turing test was included, and the character count was matched. Results Higher ratings in every category were recorded for the consultants. LLMs' overall performance in language-focused categories (coherence and comprehensibility) was relatively high. Medical adequacy was significantly poorer compared with the consultants. Possible misinformation hazards were identified in 2.8% to 18.9% of answers generated by LLMs compared with <1% of consultant's answers. Poorer conciseness rates and a higher character count were provided by LLMs. Among individual LLMs, ChatGPT 4 performed best in medical accuracy (p < 0.0001) and coherence (p = 0.001), whereas Bard received the lowest scores. Generated responses were accurately associated with their source with 98% accuracy in LLMs and 99% with consultants. Conclusions The quality of consultant answers was superior to LLMs in all categories. High semantic scores for LLM answers were found; however, the lack of medical accuracy led to potential misinformation hazards from LLM ‘consultations’. Further investigations are necessary for new generations.Peer reviewe

The tricky task of fisher-gardener research in conservation paleobiology

The study of sambaquis (ancient shell mounds) in conservation paleobiology is a complicated subject, especially when comparing body sizes of current and past mollusk valves to observe possible changes. There is a lack of information regarding how ancient fisher-gardeners collected these shellfish. Another obstacle is finding the hypothesis tests and data that can be used to compare current and past body sizes. To this end, we use the t-test (tt), Mann-Whitney (mw), and Bootstrap (bt) analyses to determine data scenarios for yellow clam (Amarilladesma mactroides) shells from two sambaquis units, and from two transects along the beaches of Rio Grande do Sul in southern Brazil. The study finds that the average body size of an Amarilladesma mactroides adult specimen is greater in sambaquis than the current valves across all tests (tt, p = 0.0005; mw, p = 0.006; bt, p = 0.04), even after reducing the sample number. However, when the comparison is only between valves that are larger than average, this does not hold true for two of the statistics (tt, p = 0.24; mw, p = 0.04; bt, p = 0.25). By refining the comparison for recent valves from different levels in the swash zone (upper, middle, and lower levels) with the past valves, we find that body sizes only differ at the middle level of the swash zone (tt, p = 0.004; mw, p = 0.004; bt, p = 0.005), where smaller adults, recruits, and juveniles live. This result could indicate that fisher-gardeners collected large organisms at distinct levels depending on the season (i.e., adults are collected in the upper level during summer and in the lower level during winter)

Assessing Homeless Population Size Through the Use of Emergency and Transitional Shelter Services in 1998: Results from the Analysis of Administrative Data from Nine US Jurisdictions

Objectives. This study reports findings from the first-ever systematic enumeration of homeless population size using data previously collected from administrative records of homeless services providers in nine US jurisdictions over a one year period. As such, it provides the basis for establishing an ongoing measure of the parameters of the homeless population and for tracking related trends on the use of homeless services over time. Methods. Each participating jurisdiction collected data through its homeless services management information systems for persons and families who use emergency shelter and transitional housing. The jurisdictions organized the data by a standardized reporting format. These data form the basis for reporting homeless population size, both in raw numbers and as adjusted for each jurisdiction’s overall population size, as well as the rate of turnover and average annual length of stay in emergency shelters and transitional housing. Results. Individual jurisdictions had annual rates of sheltered homelessness ranging from 0.1% to 2.1% of their overall population, and 1.3% to 10.2% of their poverty population. Annual population size was 2.5 to 10.2 times greater than the point-prevalent population size. Results are broken down for adults and families. Conclusions. The prevalence of homelessness varies greatly among the jurisdictions included in this study, and possible factors for this diversity are discussed. Future reports of this nature will furnish similar series of homeless enumerations across a growing number of jurisdictions, thereby providing a basis for exploring the effects of different contextual factors on local prevalence rates of homelessness

NuGrid stellar data set. 1. Stellar yields from H to Bi for stars with metallicities Z=0.02 and Z=0.01

We provide a set of stellar evolution and nucleosynthesis calculations that applies established physics assumptions simultaneously to low- and intermediate-mass and massive star models. Our goal is to provide an internally consistent and comprehensive nuclear production and yield database for applications in areas such as presolar grain studies. Our non-rotating models assume convective boundary mixing (CBM) where it has been adopted before. We include 8 (12) initial masses for Z = 0.01 (0.02). Models are followed either until the end of the asymptotic giant branch phase or the end of Si burning, complemented by simple analytic core-collapse supernova (SN) models with two options for fallback and shock velocities. The explosions show which pre-SN yields will most strongly be effected by the explosive nucleosynthesis. We discuss how these two explosion parameters impact the light elements and the s and p process. For low- and intermediate-mass models, our stellar yields from H to Bi include the effect of CBM at the He-intershell boundaries and the stellar evolution feedback of the mixing process that produces the ¹³C pocket. All post-processing nucleosynthesis calculations use the same nuclear reaction rate network and nuclear physics input. We provide a discussion of the nuclear production across the entire mass range organized by element group. The entirety of our stellar nucleosynthesis profile and time evolution output are available electronically, and tools to explore the data on the NuGrid VOspace hosted by the Canadian Astronomical Data Centre are introduced

Linked-read sequencing enables haplotype-resolved resequencing at population scale

The feasibility to sequence entire genomes of virtually any organism provides unprecedented insights into the evolutionary history of populations and species. Nevertheless, many population genomic inferences - including the quantification and dating of admixture, introgression and demographic events, and inference of selective sweeps - are still limited by the lack of high-quality haplotype information. The newest generation of sequencing technology now promises significant progress. To establish the feasibility of haplotype-resolved genome resequencing at population scale, we investigated properties of linked-read sequencing data of songbirds of the genus Oenanthe across a range of sequencing depths. Our results based on the comparison of downsampled (25x, 20x, 15x, 10x, 7x, and 5x) with high-coverage data (46-68x) of seven bird genomes mapped to a reference suggest that phasing contiguities and accuracies adequate for most population genomic analyses can be reached already with moderate sequencing effort. At 15x coverage, phased haplotypes span about 90% of the genome assembly, with 50 and 90 percent of phased sequences located in phase blocks longer than 1.25-4.6 Mb (N50) and 0.27-0.72 Mb (N90). Phasing accuracy reaches beyond 99% starting from 15x coverage. Higher coverages yielded higher contiguities (up to about 7 Mb/1Mb (N50/N90) at 25x coverage), but only marginally improved phasing accuracy. Phase block contiguity improved with input DNA molecule length; thus, higher-quality DNA may help keeping sequencing costs at bay. In conclusion, even for organisms with gigabase-sized genomes like birds, linked-read sequencing at moderate depth opens an affordable avenue towards haplotype-resolved genome resequencing at population scale

Handreichung für Ausbilderinnen und Ausbilder im Einzelhandel

Die Handreichung enthält didaktisch-methodische Instrumente für die Vermittlung des Themas "Nachhaltigkeit" in der Ausbildung. Ausbilderinnen und Ausbilder im Einzelhandel lernen, wie sie Felder für nachhaltiges Handeln im Ausbildungsberuf sowie im eigenen Betrieb erkennen und in entsprechende betriebliche Lernziele umwandeln. Jedes Kapitel der Handreichung endet mit einer Zusammenfassung von Lernaktivitäten und Kontrollfragen, ob das Lernziel erreicht wurde. Eine zusätzliche Lern-App unterstützt die Vermittlung der Inhalte

Differential susceptibility of Onchocerca volvulus microfilaria to ivermectin in two areas of contrasting history of mass drug administration in Cameroon: relevance of microscopy and molecular techniques for the monitoring of skin microfilarial repopulation within six months of direct observed treatment

Background Ivermectin is an excellent microfilaricide against Onchocerca volvulus. However, in some regions, long term use of ivermectin has resulted in sub-optimal responses to the treatment. More data to properly document the phenomenon in various contexts of ivermectin mass drug administration (IVM-MDA) is needed. Also, there is a need to accurately monitor a possible repopulation of skin by microfilariae following treatment. Skin snip microscopy is known to have a low sensitivity in individuals with light infections, which can be the case following treatment. This study was designed with two complementary objectives: (i) to assess the susceptibility of O. volvulus microfilariae to ivermectin in two areas undergoing IVM-MDA for different lengths of time, and (ii) to document the repopulation of skin by the O. volvulus microfilariae following treatment, using 3 independent diagnostic techniques. Method Identified microfilaridermic individuals were treated with ivermectin and re-examined after 1, 3, and 6 months using microscopy, actin real-time PCR (actin-qPCR) and O-150 LAMP assays. Susceptibility to ivermectin and trends in detecting reappearance of skin microfilariae were determined using three techniques. Microscopy was used as an imperfect gold standard to determine the performance of actin-qPCR and LAMP. Results In Bafia with over 20 years of IVM-MDA, 11/51 (21.6%) direct observe treated microfilaridemic participants were still positive for skin microfilariae after 1 month. In Melong, with 10 years of IVM-MDA, 2/29 (6.9%) treated participants were still positive. The microfilarial density reduction per skin biopsy within one month following treatment was significantly lower in participants from Bafia. In both study sites, the molecular techniques detected higher proportions of infected individuals than microscopy at all monitoring time points. LAMP demonstrated the highest levels of sensitivity and real-time PCR was found to have the highest specificity. Conclusion Patterns in skin mirofilariae clearance and repopulation were established. O. volvulus worms from Bafia with higher number of annual MDA displayed a lower clearance and higher repopulation rate after treatment with ivermectin. Molecular assays displayed higher sensitivity in monitoring O. volvulus microfilaridemia within six months following treatment

Validation of loop-mediated isothermal amplification for the detection of Loa loa infection in Chrysops spp in experimental and natural field conditions

Background The mass drug administration of ivermectin for onchocerciasis control has contributed to a significant drop in Loa loa microfilaria loads in humans that has, in turn, led to reduction of infection levels in Chrysops vectors. Accurate parasite detection is essential for assessing loiasis transmission as it provides a potential alternative or indirect strategy for addressing the problem of co-endemic loiasis and lymphatic filariasis through the Onchocerciasis Elimination Programme and it further reflects the true magnitude of the loiasis problem as excess human mortality has been reported to be associated with the disease. Although microscopy is the gold standard for detecting the infection, the sensitivity of this method is compromised when the intensity of infection is low. The loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay of parasite DNA is an alternative method for detecting infection which offers operational simplicity, rapidity and versatility of visual readout options. The aim of this study was to validate the Loa loa LAMP assay for the detection of infected Chrysops spp. under experimental and natural field conditions. Methods Two sets of 18 flies were fed on volunteers with either a low ( 30,000mf/ml) microfilarial load. The fed flies were maintained under laboratory conditions for 14 days and then analysed using LAMP for the detection of L. loa infection. In addition, a total of 9270 flies were collected from the north-west, east, and south-west regions (SW 1 and 2) of Cameroon using sweep nets and subjected to microscopy (7841 flies) and LAMP (1291 flies plus 138 nulliparous flies) analyses. Results The LAMP assay successfully detected parasites in Chrysops fed on volunteers with both low and high microfilariaemic loads. Field validation and surveillance studies revealed LAMP-based infection rates ranging from 0.5 to 31.6%, with the lowest levels in SW 2 and the highest infection rates in SW 1. The LAMP assay detected significantly higher infection rates than microscopy in four of the five study sites. Conclusion This study demonstrated the potential of LAMP as a simple surveillance tool. It was found to be more sensitive than microscopy for the detection of experimental and natural L. loa infections in Chrysops vectors